Psystar, a company in Miami, Florida, has released a Mac clone they claim will run OS X Leopard. The Open Computer has great base specs (Core2Duo 2.2Ghz CPU, 250GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, 2GB DDR2 RAM) and a decent looking case for only $399 (not including Leopard OS). You can choose to provide your own copy of Leopard or they will pre-install it for you.
There are some potential pitfalls to using the Open Computer. The biggest being that they’re using the EFI Emulator to achieve a native install straight from a retail DVD with OS X Leopard on it. This could be problematic with OS updates and patches from Apple. Still dang interesting, especially given the hardware specs for the price.
Check out the full specs on Psystar’s site here. (http://www.psystar.com/shop/openmac.html)
Here’s an interesting post on ZDNet’s site about a potential Apple monopoly:
Psystar: Apple’s terms violate U.S. monopoly laws by ZDNet‘s Adrian Kingsley-Hughes — Psystar, a Miami-based OEM which is now offering OS X on generic PC hardware, claims that Apple’s restrictive licensing terms violates U.S. monopoly laws. Whoa, bold claim there. Better have some deep pockets if the company wants to take the fight to court.